I sat at my friend’s kitchen table as our kids played just a few rooms away in their playroom. We had weekly playdates—one week at my house, the next week at hers. I loved our time together, but I also struggled with it as well. You see, my friend is an innie and I’m...
Mark: It happens at every marriage seminar we do. We lead couples through a process that increases emotional safety in their communication. At the end of that conversation we ask them to enjoy a full body hug for a minute. Jill: After our first “talk break” they often...
Do the voices in your head tell you that you are not good enough, smart enough, pretty enough, or just not enough, period? If so, it’s time to stop listening to the lies that sabotage your confidence and start embracing the truth of your true identity in Christ....
It was just three weeks ago when Mark and I got up and prepared to head to the airport for our speaking trip near Washington DC. As he does every day, Mark headed downstairs and made his coffee. He spent some quiet time and headed into the kitchen for a second cup of...
It’s been 7 years since our marriage fell apart. We spent well over a year repairing the erosion damage caused by slow fades we didn’t even know existed. After those years of rebuilding our marriage, we determined we would never allow our marriage to...
We left the marriage counselor’s office feeling a bit overwhelmed with the realization that sometimes marriage is really hard. Our nearly 30 years of marriage had experienced the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. We knew for better and for worse. This season...
Easter is a very special day for us. It’s special first because of Christ’s resurrection and what that did for our faith, and second, because of Mark’s resurrection and what that did for our marriage. There are three parts to Easter: Friday, Saturday, and...
Mark: I’m an extrovert. I’m refueled by being with people Jill: I’m an introvert. I’m refueled by being alone. Mark: This has caused more than a few challenges in our nearly 35 years of marriage. Jill: Initially, we were drawn to our differences. I loved how Mark was...
Mark: I’m the dreamer in our marriage. I’m the one who has visions of romance dancing in my head. I’m the one who wants to splurge on occasion. I’m the one who has creativity and ideas flowing out of me all the time. Jill: And I’m the...
It was Theodore Roosevelt who said, “Comparison is the thief of joy.” And he lived in a time where comparison wasn’t nearly as easy as it is in our world of social media! Moms are particularly vulnerable to the Perfection Infection (PI) I first wrote...
Mark: Jill and I have had our share of conflict over the years. In our 34 years of marriage, we know the realities of conflict and for many years we would clash with one another and it would be a flash point in our marriage. A flash point happens when we have...
A couple of weeks ago my friend Amy lost her husband. This makes the sixth friend in my life who has become a widow. I can’t even begin to imagine the pain of losing the love of your life. It’s a club each of us hope we’ll never have membership...
When Dr. Kathy Koch and I wrote our No More Perfect Kids book, we talked about how important it is to love the kids we have, not the ones we wish we had. Sometimes we imagine what life will look like as a parent, but then we find ourselves face to face with parenting...
Mark: When I walked away from our marriage seven years ago, I was absolutely convinced Jill was the problem. In fact, I had a well-rehearsed list in my head of all the things she did wrong and all the ways we were wrong together. I was tired of dealing with the same...
Jill: One of the parts of our marriage seminars that Mark and I enjoy the most is the Q&A sessions. This is where we get to hear stories of how the content and conversations are making a difference. It’s where attendees ask questions. It’s also where...
